Chapter 520

Panic Button

Jesse and Gail were out.

Gail drove the SUV. She knew where they were headed. She just wasn't sure what was going to happen when they arrived there.

"No problem." Gail said. "It should be like the last time."

Jesse put her weapons away after she'd checked them.

"That's what I hope." Jesse said.

Gail figured some people were going to die soon.

They pulled up a block away from a theater and waited. One of the movies just ended. It was a romance move of some sort. There were a lot of young females that exited the theater.

They were aware that a girl was 'jumped' once a week near this theater that just let the girls out. It was often near the park that was close by. It was dark and secluded. There were a lot of trees and shrubs. There were a lot of places to hide.

Jesse wanted to make sure it didn't happen again.

They watched the girls disperse. Most entered cars or were picked up. A few waited for the bus. Some chose to walk. Most of those were in groups but not all of them.

"There are two girls headed for the park separately." Gail said. "They are going to shortcut through it."

Jesse gritted her teeth.

The park was where two of the assaults took place.

Jesse looked over the two girls. One was blonde and the other was Asian with long dark hair. She wore a short skirt. It reminded her of her when she was younger.

"You take the blonde." Jesse said. "I have the other girl."

Gail didn't like to split up. She couldn't protect Jesse if she was away from her.

"Maybe nothing will happen." Gail said.

Jesse didn't smile. Her face was serious.

"It won't while we're here." Jesse said.

Gail was sure this was a mistake.

"You need to be careful." Gail said. "She isn't you."

Jesse looked over at Gail.

"I'm going to make sure she never is either." Jesse said. "Let's go."

Jesse and Gail exited the SUV.

Gail tailed the blonde girl. She looked back over at Jesse as she disappeared behind some bushes in pursuit of the young Asian girl. She was sure there was going to be someone killed tonight.

Jesse wanted to make sure Gail followed the blonde. It looked like she would. They didn't normally split up when they were 'out'. Gail did most of the 'dirty work' when an issue arose. No one knew how to deal with a Terminator face to face.

She carried a Taser and an M9. She wished she still had the silenced .22 with her that Cameron let her use before. It didn't matter. She also carried her knife with her. The blade was thirsty for blood.

Jesse could get to her M9 or Taser in a second. Right now she chose to carry her knife in her hand.

This was personal to her. She followed a few hundred feet behind the young Asian female. She was going to make sure that 'girl' didn't become a 'woman' in the weeds along the side of the trail.

It was clear to Cameron what was about to happen in Savannah's room. She'd heard them converse and then strip. They were on the bed now. She waited to hear if Savannah let out a small 'squeal' or a 'gasp'.

Cameron was filled with anger, rage and jealousy.

How could John do this to her?

He KNEW she loved Savannah.

Now John was about to take Savannah away from her.

A feeling of rage built up inside of Cameron.

Cameron's anger quickly grew out of control….

John and Savannah were naked on her bed. He was over the top of her. They were about to make love.

Savannah lay on the bed as she held John. She was ready for him. No foreplay was necessary. They were both ready right now.

They both knew it was about to happen.

Their eyes were locked together.

Savannah spread her legs. She lifted them and wrapped them around John's back.

She urged him forward towards her as she pulled him towards her and into her. She didn't want him to 'wimp out' at the last second. She wanted this.

It was their destiny.

The look of love was in their eyes and in the air.

They were both filled with anticipation.

Savannah waited a long time for his experience and she was more than ready to try it. She at least wanted to know what it was like.

John was elated he was about to be with a virgin. He always wanted to be the 'first' with someone. He really didn't care who. He was pleased it was Savannah.

"Go - slow." Savannah softly said.

Bob could see they needed to know more immediately. John Henry seemed unresponsive at this point.

"John Henry!" Bob shouted as he grabbed him. "Are we or are YOU under attack?"

John Henry possessed a blank look on his face.

Kyle became increasing worried as each second passed.

John Henry seemed unable to communicate at this point.

Kyle wanted to raise the alarm. They needed to get ready for an attack. The time for caution was gone.

"I want to hit the 'Panic Button'." Kyle said. "I want to error on the side of caution."

Bob looked at John Henry again and agreed.

"We can sort it out later." Bob said. "Good Call."

Jim still checked the monitors. He was worried too.

"Do it." Jim said.

Kyle hit the 'Panic Button'.

Instantly an alarm sounded around the facility with flashing lights. It was a low key alarm so as not to disrupt communications or operations. It emitted its own specific sound. They'd tested it twice, both times there were announcements before and during its sounding. Everyone was aware before it was tested as to what it would sound like and mean.

Now it was just the alarm and the lights. This was the real deal. Everyone would know it.

This would send the alert out to everyone that an attack was imminent. The Detail houses would go to full alert. If the Young or Reese families were at home, they would be moved into the fortified underground bunkers. Cameron's base, all Terminators and field operations would get the alert. Everyone's phone was modified to sound the alarm even if it was turned off.

Bob used the com system that would broadcast everywhere the alarm sounded.

"This is no drill." Bob said.

The announcement from Bob made the warning sound even more serious.

It wasn't a message from John or John Henry. That gave it a much more ominous overtone.

Derek looked at Riley when the alarm sounded.

Fear gripped both of them. They knew what this could mean. They might be fighting for their lives in seconds.

"Arm yourself and stay here." Derek said. "Put your vest on with the special Coltan plates Cameron made for you."

Derek threw his vest on, grabbed his M4 and headed out.

Riley put her special vest on and went out anyway. It was a special vest Cameron made for her to protect her baby as much as possible. It was another sign of the extra effort that Cameron went to, to assist others in the most meaningful ways possible. Her place was to protect Jan and she wasn't going to neglect her job…. That was to free up Sarah and Kyle for combat or to repulse an assault on the base. Whatever this was, it wasn't good. She went to her designated staging area. They were all in this together.

Sarah was on her way to get Jan.

As soon as the alarm sounded, she went to the nearest arms locker, grabbed a vest and an M4.

It barely slowed her down as she ran.

The Terminators at the base armed themselves with either an M60 or M249. All of them were loaded with Coltan projectiles. Each one also carried an M79 or M32A1 with acid rounds as well as a bandoleer of HE rounds and several Thermite grenades.

They all were assigned specific locations to cover. They all moved with speed and efficiency.

Everyone knew where to go.

Cameron was outside Savannah's room. Her eyes glowed red, her anger raged out of control. Savannah belonged to HER….

John was about to steal the most precious thing she wanted for herself.

The alarm snapped Cameron out of it. This was about survival now. She couldn't help but feel this was tied to her recent disappearance.

She immediately headed for an arms locker. She grabbed a vest, M4, M32A1 and several Thermite grenades as she headed for the Command Center.

John's naked body was above Savannah's naked body, their lips were about to touch. Their two separate bodies were about to become 'one'. It was the future and the future was now.

Savannah moved her legs behind him and urged him forward.

"Go - slow." Savannah said softly as he was about to enter and 'share' with her.

They both froze when their phones and the base alarm sounded.

The look of hurt was in their eyes as this moment of love about to be completed was stolen from them. They were only a second away from fulfilling their destiny - A SECOND.

Savannah could feel 'John' just outside of her. He was almost lined up. He'd just missed in his haste. He was as excited as she was. She contemplated thrusting John into her. At least she wouldn't be a virgin anymore. This was a serious issue at hand. It was about survival now, not lust or love.

She unlocked her legs from around John.

John was away from Savannah in an instant. He'd briefly almost made that initial thrust. He would have taken Savannah's virginity. It would have only been for a second. Now they might need to fight for their lives. He jumped up.

They both scrambled for clothes and weapons.

Savannah opened the arms locker in her room. It was fully stocked for three people. Evidently Cameron anticipated a 'three way' might occur in there at some point.

She was gravely disappointed. 'ALMOST' was the thought that screamed through her mind as she threw on her underwear and a shirt. She immediately put on body armor and grabbed her M4. She looked at the wedding dress one last time as it lay draped over a chair. She hoped she didn't die a virgin.

John was deeply disappointed. He'd been co close to his destiny and what Cameron wanted for all of them. He grabbed his pants and threw the vest on that Savannah tossed him along with an M4. He didn't notice the bulge that rapidly faded in the front of his pants.

They were hardly clothed but they were armored up and armed. They were ready for the threat. They didn't have a clue what it was.

They both headed out the door and into the hall.

At the Command Center, Kyle, Bob and Jim all armored up and now carried weapons as well.

Cameron ran in the door. She was the first one to reach them.

"What's the report?" Cameron asked.

Kyle didn't have any concrete answers. He was the one who pushed the 'panic button' so it was on him.

"John Henry thought we might be under attack or an attack was imminent." Kyle said. "Bob and Jim are currently trying to verify this. Something's really wrong with John Henry now too."

Cameron quickly checked everything there and then checked with her base as well. CamNet was unable to detect a threat. CamNet wondered what happened at the Resistance base. CamNet was at full alert now also.

The blank look on John Henry's face changed some.

"Captured…." John Henry managed to say. "Cameron…."

Kyle heard it again. He didn't understand what it meant.

"What does that mean?" Kyle asked. "He's said that several times before Bob disconnected him from the server."

Fear flooded Cameron. If she'd been captured, everything was compromised. Their entire operation and hers was vulnerable. They could be wiped out, all of them and 'everything'. Her hand was about glitch. She needed to take control. She was CamNet at her base and now she needed to be in control here.

"Plug me in." Cameron said.

Bob and Jim hesitated and looked at each other. It sounded like a bad idea based on what John Henry attempted to say several times. They both thought that might be the beginning of the end.

Cameron was angered further by their hesitation.

"Do it - NOW." Cameron commanded.

Bob plugged her into the server. Cameron was their leader. She would know what was best for all of them. She'd told all of them that several times. Maybe she was right.

CamNet established a direct link with Cameron as soon as she plugged in.

Cameron was now in control of both of their servers. In this instant was the now most power being on earth.

She was able to get into every computer system in the world and take control.

Cameron was only a glitch away from becoming - Skynet.

Sarah reached Jan. She'd been asleep. She was awake now and looking around scared. She sobbed a few times but knew this was a serious event.

Sarah checked around again outside in the hall. She saw Riley coming in the distance. She then returned to calm Jan.

"Aunt Riley is here to take care of you." Sarah said. "Do whatever she says and follow the rules. Follow your training."

Jan nodded.

"I will, mommy." Jan said. "I'll fight when I need to as well."

Sarah felt a kick in her gut. She pictured Riley and Jan fighting it out against superior numbers before they were overrun. They would be killed or ravaged and killed.

Riley would protect Jan and get ready for any assault.

Sarah knew she needed to protect Jan, Riley and her baby as well….

If the fighting picked up, she would need to face it head on. She would try to draw the enemy away from Jan and Riley. She might buy them a few precious seconds.

Derek reached the Command Center.

"Where are they?" Derek asked. "How many are there?"

Kyle was pleased to see his brother ready for combat.

"We don't know." Kyle said. "It may be a false alarm but John Henry tried to warn us of danger and then something happened to him. I hit the 'Panic Button' to play it safe. He kept saying something about an attack."

Derek looked at the blank look on John Henry's face. That didn't look good at all. He could see Cameron was in control.

John and Savannah arrived a short time later.

"What is it?" John asked as he looked at the monitors.

Kyle and Bob filled him in. There were no facts.

That seemed to make it worse for all of them. If they knew the nature of the attack, they had something to fight. Now they only had their fears to fight as they waited.

John looked at John Henry. He seemed near standby status at this point. He saw that Cameron was now plugged in at John Henry's station.

"Cameron, do you have anything?" John asked.

Cameron checked the area around both bases and with the two Details and other Terminators out in the field.

"I have nothing yet." Cameron said. "The protection Details report nothing. The Young residence is secure and everyone is in the bunker. The Reese Detail is at the ballpark. The Detail has closed in but not yet taken the boys into protective custody. I told them to stay ready but hold their position. They will act if it seems necessary or we tell them to do so."

Derek and Kyle looked at each other with that revelation. It made them question their decision not to clue their younger selves in about the 'real world' and the Resistance. It was just something they didn't want them to need to deal with. They might be physically manhandled by Terminators to protect them if this situation escalated.

Cameron looked at John Henry. She thought he looked like she did sometimes….

She wondered if she'd corrupted him during their interface or if she'd been infected with a virus. She could have passed it along to him. She scanned herself and nothing showed up. Then again, that could be how it was designed.

"I want Bob and Jim to plug into this server." Cameron said. "They're trained on what to do. I'll interface directly with John Henry."

Cameron noticed John only wore his pants and a vest. He didn't have a shirt on and was barefoot. She also noticed Savannah only wore a shirt, underwear and a vest. It was John's shirt. It wasn't even buttoned and a lot was showing, even with the vest on.

She felt her left hand glitch. She was still plugged into the server. She was directly connected to both servers and everything in the world that they could control. There were thousands of nuclear weapons at her disposal from various nations around the world.

Cameron looked at John and her eyes glowed red.

She was afraid he'd defiled Savannah. She was sure that John 'spoiled' Savannah just to rub it in her face. It reminded her of the time she caught him out with Riley all night. She knew what they did. It was the way he smirked at her that hurt the most. It showed her how little she actually meant to him. Now he's probably 'ruined' Savannah just to spite her.

The brightness of the red In Cameron's eyes continued to grow.

Kyle and Derek both noticed how John and Savannah were 'dressed'.

'What the Hell?' Both of them thought.

It looked like….

Savannah and John both noticed how they were dressed now too and that everyone looked at them.

Bob noticed Cameron as she looked at John. He could see there was a problem. It was a big one.

Jim caught it a second later. He too realized what was about to happen.

Cameron was about to go 'ballistic'. Her eyes glowed bright red and she was plugged in. She was about to 'glitch' out. Since she was connected to both servers, anything could happen.

Maybe Cameron was about to become Skynet.

"John, RUN." Bob shouted. "Unplug Cameron NOW."

Bob moved in front of John.

Jim moved to unplug Cameron.

Cameron stood as she prepared for combat. She was still plugged in. The fate at the world was at her mercy.

Cameron wanted to KILL.

Like ALL of her problems, they all centered around John.

This one did too.

Cameron was sure John corrupted Savannah and defiled - HER Savannah.

Was Cameron driven past the breaking point?

Was 'Skynet' only seconds away form becoming a reality?

Could ANYTHING stop what was about to happen?

Events reached a tipping point. The 'perfect storm' already started to happen.

'Game Over', seemed to be the only thought.

This looked like the end….

Panic Button

Few things in life
Come off like a dream
More likely than not
Things will make one scream

Everyone tries so hard
To make things work out right
Along the way are things
For which they must fight

Everyone steps up to the plate
Often one will swing and miss
As away fades a loving kiss
Who is actually the one remiss

Over and over it reoccurs
The results are often the same
That is just life's game
Everyone needs to share the blame

Nothing can be left unattended
There are always those who will but in
When the one loved is about to be lost
Everyone hits the panic button

Nobody